Day 11-"Hiker Hunger"

I woke up chanting "Burger! Burger! Burger!" Curtis, Cameron, and Aj quickly joined in (Curtis might have been chanting "Veggie Burger"). We hit the road around 6 am. Most the group stopped for a wilderness bathroom break, but Aj and I had food on our minds, so we pressed on despite the relief the wilderness had to offer. We talked about what we were going to eat the entire hike into town, and decided we'd try and order a meal and finish it before any of the other guys showed up, and then we could order another with them. Aj and I split three breakfasts, waited an hour until they served lunch, then got a burger. We were infected by "hiker hunger" at this point. A disease where no matter how much you eat, your body still tells you that you're hungry. Cameron's ankle had been bugging him, and Dirt Bag's Achilles had been hurting, so Cameron hitched to Idiwyld with Chosen One and Dirt Bag, while Curtis, Aj, and I began our ascent up the mountain. About 5 minutes into the hike Curtis found a giant pine cone the size of our head. He was so happy to see it, pointing out the cone to Aj and I with the enthusiasm of a 4 year old pointing out an elephant at the zoo to his dad. I was feeling a little rambunctious with 3 meals and 10 sodas in my belly, so on a whim, I punted the pine cone as far as I could. Curtis gave me a look of shock and horror, feeling betrayed at this new monster that had slipped into his party. Aj laughed until he was crying, which was almost as much a betrayal to Curtis as the fact that I kicked the pinecone in the first place.

The rest of the night felt a little weird without Cameron. We camped on a ridge that was full of old fossilized horse poop. Aj explained to us that the reason for this is because the hill we were on is where all the horses gather for their full moon rituals, it made sense.